Indian Design and Decor Blog

Menu

DECOR 101: Pastel Living Room

Pastel is NOT (only) girly. Contemporary-Pastel is a great decor theme and it can be gender neutral, if done right. Not every pastel decor themed room has to look like a nursery or teen bedroom. If you can find the right balance with neutral colors, black, white and wood finishes you can transform any living room with a pastel theme, even a bachelor pad can have pastel accents. It’s time we stop gender stereotyping colors and themes and have some fun with decor.

Pastel colors are described as ‘milky’ and ‘washed out’. The major colors we seen in pastel themes are desaturated blues, pinks, greens and purples, which if you add ‘white’ to, they will ultimately attain a very light tint or pastel color like periwinkle blue, baby pink, mint and pale lilac.

I am sharing with you today 10 tips to make a pastel theme work for your living room and a pastel theme mood board with links.

1. Pair Pastel accents with Soft Neutrals

You can not go wrong with neutral (grey, beige, taupe, white) and pastel pairing. Pastel accents in a neutral decor will be an interesting addition to your living room (see below).

2. Pattern and Pastels

Patterned pastel prints in curtains or upholstery fabric is a great way to sneak in some pastel love in your space.

Patterned art, prints and cushion covers can also be your transient pastel elements in decor if you are having trouble committing to permanent pastel fixtures (see below).

3. Pastel theme, white and tiny pops of color

Solid pastel furniture works really well when you pair it with white accessories (see below) and include some pops of relatively saturated colors.

4. Black and pastels

Black and pastels really work well together, when done right. If you balance the black elements by spacing them out and including some white and neutral accessories, you will also have a stylishly curated display on a bookshelf (see below).

If you are using black more abundantly in your decor then make sure to use ample light toned wood and white elements to make the pastel pop (see below).

5. Black and white geometric patterns with pastels

By now we know that black, white and pastels make an interesting threesome. But the real magic happens when you pair black and white geometric patterns (stripes, hounds-tooth, diamonds, dots) with solid pastels. You can keep the look primarily black and white with pastel accents (see below). Gender-neutral pastels…anyone..???

Or a pastel room with black and white geometric pattern accents (see below). This combination does not disappoint.

6. Rose gold and copper finishes with pastels

Pastels work very well with copper and rose gold metallic finishes (better than gold and chrome). The pink tint in these finishes compliments the pink and peach pastel colors especially.

7. Watercolors and Pastels

If you are having a tough time picking the right art for a pastel theme then watercolors as a medium are your best bet.

8. Light tone wood finishes with pastels

When paring natural wood finishes in a pastel decor theme you should be very careful to team them with the right undertones. Natural light toned wood finish like natural oak (desaturated yellow undertone) and natural maple (pink undertone) pair very well with pastels as opposed to heavily saturated wood finishes like cherry or walnut. Pastels pair well with driftwood finishes (grey undertones) too.

Yellow undertone in Wood Finish (above)

Pink undertone in Wood Finish (above)

9. Pops of neon

While pastel is a theme that pairs well with mostly muted colors and desaturated elements, you can always push the boundaries and break the rules with a few neon accessories for pops of color.

10. Floral prints and pastels

Floral patterns of any scale in pastel colors can instantly brighten up a pastel theme that is going bland or 2-dimensional.

Now that you know the ground rules and the do’s and don’ts, it should be easy to decide on the furniture, accessories and finishes for a pastel living room decor. Below I am sharing a mood board that is curated with the above self-help rules in mind.

If you appreciate any article in the above mood board for your own living room, I am also sharing the links for purchasing these items online. Some articles are now sold out but you can always take a cue from the design and find something similar on your own.